Showing titles in Medieval

The idea of a powerful woman in the Middle Ages seems like an oxymoron. Females in this time are imagined to be damsels in distress, trapped in a high tower, and waiting for knights to rescue them, all while wearing traffic-cones for a hat. After rescue, their lives improved little. Their career choices were to be either docile queens, housewives, or be burned at the stake for witchcraft. But what if this image of medieval women is a complete fiction? It turns out that it is. Powerful female rulers fill the Middle Ages.

Sex! The Tudor's loved it. It was often considered a sport, just like hunting and jousting. The court was always awash with rumours and innuendo. For many at the royal court promiscuity was a way of life and marriage was normally no barrier. However, on occasion, events would occur that would be considered shocking for even this, most liberal, of royal courts. This is the second audiobook in the series and we look at more of the sex scandals that were to shake the royal court.

If you were to think of a group of crusading knights, some of the better-known Crusaders would likely come to mind, such as the Knights Templar, the Hospitallers, or perhaps even the Teutonic Knights. But the Order of Saint Lazarus? This group is not typically right on the tip of anyone's tongue—yet they were an essential and integral part of monastic Christendom.

La millenaria storia dell'impero di Bisanzio ha avuto continui punti di contatto con quella dell'Occidente, basta pensare alla presenza dei bizantini in Italia, dove restarono come dominatori dal VI all'XI secolo. I rapporti si fecero poi conflittuali fino a giungere nel 1204 alla quarta crociata, allorché veneziani e crociati si impossessarono di Costantinopoli. Nel Trecento l'atteggiamento dell'Occidente, e soprattutto di Venezia, fu più accondiscendente nei confronti di Bisanzio, considerata un avamposto della cristianità contro la montante marea dei Turchi ottomani.

In the autumn of 1911, an eye-watering mass of French citizens gathered around a churchyard in the heart of Rouen to celebrate the millennial anniversary of Normandy. A suspenseful hush fell over the congregation as a city official strode to the front of the crowd, placing his hands upon the large cloth draped over the mysterious statue. With a flick of his wrists, he unveiled an exquisite marble effigy of a handsome warrior. The statue was of none other than Rollo the Viking, father of the Duchy of Normandy.

Spiritual seekers throughout history have sought illumination through solitary contemplation. In the Christian tradition, medieval England stands out for its remarkable array of hermits, recluses, and spiritual outsiders -from Cuthbert, Godric of Fichale, and Christina of Markyate to Richard Rolle, Julian of Norwich, and Margery Kempe. In The Secret Within, Wolfgang Riehle offers the first comprehensive history of English medieval mysticism in decades - one that will appeal to anyone fascinated by mysticism as a phenomenon of religious life.

In the summer of 1483, two princes vanished. One was the new king of England, 12-year-old Edward V; the other was his younger brother, 9-year-old Richard, Duke of York. Charged with handling affairs of state in their minority was their uncle, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who subsequently placed the boys in the Tower of London and replaced his nephew on the throne as Richard III. Within a month of his ascension to the throne, the deposed king and his brother were never seen again.

“The Roman Church...[says] that the heretics they persecute are the church of wolves. But this is absurd, for the wolves have always pursued and killed the sheep, and today it would have to be the other way around for the sheep to be so mad as to bite, pursue, and kill the wolves, and for the wolves to be so patient as to let the sheep devour them!” – Excerpt from the alleged writings of the Cathars. Carcassonne today is the capital of the Aude department in the Occitanie region of southwestern France, about 58 miles from Toulouse. It lies by the “eastward bend” of the glittering cobalt waters of the River Aude, which serves as a barrier between the two towns of the city: the Cité and the Ville Basse. It is the old Cité that attracts most of Carcassonne's visitors (3 million of them each year), for it houses the historic fortress that looks like it came straight out of a fairy tale and supposedly became the muse behind the captivating castles featured in Walt Disney's acclaimed 1959 classic Sleeping Beauty. But this breathtaking town is so much more than just the perfect spot for wedding shoots and social media narcissism, for it is a place that oozes medieval history.

This work presents a composite view of medieval English university life. The author offers detailed insights into the social and economic conditions of the lives of students, their teaching masters and fellows. The experiences of college benefactors, women and university servants are also examined, demonstrating the vibrancy they brought to university life.

Rares sont ceux qui n'ont pas entendu parler des redoutables Vikings et de leurs audacieux exploits. Ces navigateurs du Nord, le fléau du Moyen Âge, ont marqué l'histoire du monde d'une manière grandiose. Courageux, rebelles et animés par le désir d'exploration, les hommes du Nord furent les conquérants médiévaux les plus redoutés. Beaucoup les croyaient invincibles, et ils maintinrent sous leur emprise de nombreuses nations chrétiennes en difficulté.

Embark on a captivating voyage through the ages with (The Great Guardian), a meticulously crafted exploration into the enthralling history of the Cane Corso dog breed. Authored by Cole B. Brodoski, this compelling narrative weaves together the threads of loyalty, strength, and the indomitable spirit that characterize this magnificent guardian.

Here, National Book Award winner Richard Winston explores life in the Middle Ages - from the fifth to the 15th centuries - beginning with the fall of the Roman Empire and ending with the dawn of the Renaissance. In both countryside and cities, from the peasants to the bourgeoisie to the nobility, no aspect of life in this era is left unexplored.

The story of the Silk Road has been a popular topic among tourists, academics, economists, state parties, and daydreaming children for many centuries. In many ways the Silk Road can be seen everywhere, and it has existed for as long as people have traveled across Eurasia. Its impact is widely felt among the diverse peoples that live on the continent, through the unique regional art and architectural styles, as well as in countless films, books, academic studies, and organized tours devoted to the ancient trade routes.

Like many historical figures, Harun al-Rashid’s biography has become part reality and part myth. A real individual and the fourth caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate, Harun al-Rashid is best known to many individuals because of his role in famous literature like One Thousand and One Nights, not necessarily because of his policy decisions. This is unusual because Harun al-Rashid was perhaps the most influential of the Abbasid caliphs due to his role in bringing economic prosperity.

Books can change the world. They can influence, entertain, transport, and enlighten. But across the centuries, authors have disguised their work with codes and ciphers, secret scripts and magical signs. What made these authors decide to keep their writings secret? What were they trying to hide?

A hammer no mortal can lift. A flame-haired fiery storm god. A comic book alien-hero-god who defends humanity. The swastika. Even the name "Thursday" ("Thor's Day"). Despite the virtual disappearance of the indigenous Norse religion and mythology several centuries ago, modern society still regularly encounters the storm god Thor, who continues to be brought back to life in the form of literature and was recently the protagonist in a big-budget Hollywood movie.

From the late eighth century to somewhere around the middle of the 11th century, the history of Europe was dominated by the people who have become known as the Vikings. The Vikings were among the first global explorers who established territory that stretched from North America in the west to Constantinople in the east, and from the frigid wastes of the Arctic in the north to the warm shores of the Mediterranean Sea in the south.

Nessuna città ha un nome così evocativo: appena lo pronunci l'Oriente t'assale. Samarcanda è l'estrema tra le Alessandrie fondate dal re macedone; è la città delle fortezze e dei sepolcri; è il nodo carovaniero sulla Via della Seta, il maggior raccordo commerciale di terra fra Cina ed Europa; è la sede del Gur-Amir, tempio e santuario, centro del mondo dalla cupola turchese sotto la quale il grande Tamerlano dorme per sempre.

Samarkand is one of the oldest cities of Central Asia, founded nearly 3,000 years ago. The legendary city was the capital of the Sogdians, a trading people who facilitated the spread of commodities, religions, technologies, and ideas across the Silk Road between China and the rest of Eurasia. Samarkand was a key site along the ancient Silk Road, a place where a number of world cultures from the East and the West met and assimilated.

Jaime Macpherson learned the meaning of betrayal on the Isle of Skye when her beloved Malcolm MacLeod wed another woman to save his inheritance. Her dreams of happiness crushed, she sought refuge in the elegant palace of the Duke of Norfolk. There Jaime would find Malcolm again, a prisoner in the castle dungeon. In the icy darkness, she learns how to love again. But with England and Scotland at war, her bold scheme to free Malcolm would imperil her own life.